Sofa bed



Nov. 8, 1938. R. w. SCHWAB, JR., ET AL 2,136,320

` SOFA BED Filed Aug. 11, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet l Nov. 8, 1938. R. w. SCHWAB, JR., ET AL 2,136,320

SOFA BED Filed Aug. ll, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 TAB...

Patented Nov. 8, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SOFA BED Robert W. Schwab, Jr., and William Parks Rocker, Atlanta, Ga., assignors to Southern Spring Bed Company, Atlanta, Ga., a corporation of Georgia Application August 11,

2 Claims.

0 to a bed.

Another object of the invention consists inv the provision of a sofa-bed having the following important characteristics and features of invention: A

1. The mechanism is extremely simple.

2. The sofa-bed can be converted from day use to night use without pulling it away from the Wall since no portion of the back, during or after conversion, projects any further to the rear than when vin the sofa position.

3. The front of the back is used at all times so that only one side thereof need be upholstered and both portions of the bed, i. e., the back cushion and the seat cushion, can be of the same resiliency. Because the lower edge of the back engages the rear edge of the seat when converted to bed form, the upper edge of the back can have any desired configuration, which contributes to the appearance and desirability of the article.

'4. The angle of the seat is changed from a rearward incline in sofa position to horizontal vin bed position.

5. An Vunusual amount of storage space is available beneath the seat which will hold all bedding and an additional pad or mattress if desired.

6. The seat is entirely independent of the 'back'and can be operated very readily to gain access to the storage space without moving the back from its sofa position.

Other and further features and objects of the invention will be more apparent to those skilled in the art upon a consideration of the accompanying drawings and following specification whereinis disclosed a single exemplary embodiment of the invention with the understanding that such changes and modifications may be made therein as fall within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In said drawings:

Figure 1 is a fore and aft section of the sofabed constructed according to the present invenytion shown in the sofa position. the section being 1937, Serial No. 158,564

taken just inside of the box frame of one arm;

Figure 2 is a section taken as in Figure 1 but showing the sofa-bed in the converted or bed position;

Figure 3 is a rear elevation of the sofa-bed in sofa position, with parts broken away on line '3 3 of Figure 1 to show theinterior construction and the mechanism; and

Figure 4 is a fragmentary perspective View looking down inside with the seat moved `forward and the back portion broken away to show the mechanism on a large scale.

Most of the present-day convertible sofa-beds are of the type in which the seat may be drawn'4 forward and the back folded downso that the two parts constitute a substantially continuous flat surface suitable for sleeping purposes, the area of the combined seat and back being substantially the equivalent of a double bed. 'I'he usual type of such device is arranged to have the upper edge of the back portion drawn forward to meet the rear edge of the seat lportion sothat the backrof the back portion becomes the bed surface and the back must therefore be upholstered on two sides, one for use with the sofa and one for sleeping purposes. This is costly and makes it difficult to obtain the same resiliency for the two parts of the bed. This form of device has several other objections among which may be noted the requirement for a perfectly straight line for the top of the back which must meet closely the rear edge of the seat to prevent any gaps in the sleeping surface. Another objection is that the mechanism hinging the back is such as to cause it to project rear- Wardly during or after the folding operation to a distance greater than it projects when in the sofa position, necessitating moving the article of furniture away from the wall before it is converted to prevent damage to the wall.

The present invention overcomes thevarious objections enumerated above by providing totally independent seat and back: portions, and mounting the back portion to be so moved in `the conversion operation that its forward yface becomes the bed surface. This permits the upper edge, which becomes one edge of the bed, to have any desired curved or scalloped configuration for ornamental purposes. This back demands but a single surface of sprung andy padded upholstering and the folding action is `such that no portion of the back extends substantially further to the rear during or after the conversion operation than when in sofa position. Thus, the article of furniture does not need to be moved from the Wall before converting. This eliminates considerable unnecessary labor and damage to floors and the like.

For a better understanding of the invention, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings wherein I0 indicates the seat unit having the upholstered upper surface II, and I2 indicates the back having the single upholstered surface I3, the two units being supported in such a manner that they can assume the sofa position of Figure l or the bed position of Figure 2. Preferably, for the sake of appearance when in the sofa position, suitable upholstered arms I4 are provided between which the parts Ill and I2 are fitted.

As seen in Figure 3 the arms I4 each have a suitable lower box structure including the inner board member. These boards I5 form the ends of a larger box when connected together by the rear member I5 and the forward member I1.

This larger box is provided with two fore'and aft partition members I8 reinforcing it and providing between them a storage compartment for bedding, separated by the members I8 from the operating mechanism.

Supported from the upper edges of the rear and forward members IS and I1 are two fore and aft tracks E3 of channel construction, each track having an offset rearwardly and downwardly inclined portion 20 connecting the forward horizontal raised portion 2l and the rear horizontal lowered portion 22.

The seat unit Il! is preferably formed of structural material such as angle bars and includes suitable coil and link springs. The frame of the spring portion is attached to a forward vertical board member 23 which may be suitably covered with upholstery and padded if desired to give it an appropriate appearance. This board is reinforced by legs 23', supported by casters 24 adapted to run on the floor and carry the weight of the forward edge of the seat unit. When in sofa position these casters abut a stop strip 25 secured along the lower edge of the member I1 of the main box frame whichA is supported from suitable feet 26. The rear edge of the seat frame is supported by a pair of rollers 21 each operating in the channel of one of the tracks I9. With the rollers 24 against the stop member 25, the rollers 21 are positioned near the bottoms of the inclined offset portions 20 and thus lower the rear edge of the seat to give it a comfortable tilt or incline as is desired when it is used as a seat.

When the-seat is drawn forward to the position shown in Figure 2 the rollers 21 move up onto the elevated portion 2l of the track and bring the top surface of the seat to a substantially horizontal position as desired for sleeping. It may be noted here that the inclined track portions 20 insure the seat remaining in its retracted position unless it is given a substantial pull with the intent of moving it forward. When the seat is forward with the rollers 21 against the stops 28, which limit its outward movement, substantially the full area of the storage compartment is accessible. Y

The back I2 is formed on a suitable angle iron frame as seen at 30 in Figures 3 and 4 and is provided with link and coil springs and padded upholstery in the same manner as the seat. The back of the back member is covered to the horizontal line 3l by the same upholstery fabric as the rest of the back and from this line the fabric 32 is loose and unattached until it reaches the rear member I5 of the box which it covers completely for ornamental purposes in case the back is exposed.

The mechanism for supporting the back from the box comprises two' levers 34 each pivoted at 35 to the corresponding end member of the frame 30 of the back. These levers are each attached to the rod 3S as shown at 31 by welding or the like so that they must move in unison and with the rotation of the rod which is pivoted in suitable brackets 38 each having a bearing member 39 and stop member 40 secured together and attached by means of screws 4I to the adjacent arm box inner member I5. An additional reinforcing and stop bar 42 is secured as at 43 to the same box member I5 and is drilled to receive the rod 36. It ts just against the outer face of the lever 34.

'I'he lever passes beyond the bar and the depending end 45 has a portion 46 thereon bent outwardly at right angles. This end 46 serves two purposes, rst it engages under the reinforcing bar 42 and stops rearward movement of the upper portion of the lever 34 in the proper position to hold the back at the correct angle for sofa purposes, and second, it provides an attachment for one end of the coil spring 43, the opposite end of which is attached to a bracket 49 secured to the box member I5. This spring exerts a strong pull to hold the end 4S against the bar 42 and maintain the back in its elevated position. The back is prevented from rotating about its pivots 35 at the upper ends of the levers 34 when in the sofa position by the abutment of the rear edge of the seat against the forward face of the back and when a person is seated the seat cannot be moved forward because of the rollers 21 riding on the inclines 2D of the tracks which hold the scat securely in its rearmost position. The back is prevented from rotating in a counter-clockwise direction by having its lower member engage the forward edges of the levers 34.

The bottom frame member of the back is prov1ded with a pair of rollers 55 which are positioned above the lowermost portion of the tracks butfdo not engage it when the back is in sofa position.

When it is desired to convert from a sofa to a bed the rear edge of the seat is grasped and the seat drawn forward to the position shown in Figure 2. grasped and pulled forward and upward, the back rotating about its pivots 35 at the same time that the levers 34 swinging in a counter-clockwise direction as viewed in Figures 1 and 2. The rollers 5D shortly engage the tracks and the rear edge of the back can be pushed down against the action of the springs 48 until it assumes a position such as shown in Figure 2 where its weight and the unfavorable leverage of the short ends of the levers prevents these springs from returning it, although they are of material assistance when it is desired to move the back to its sofa position.

The rollers 5U support the now forward edge of the back and the rear edge of the back is supported by the engagement of the bumpers or blocks 53 with the upper edges of the levers 34. The blocks are clearly seen somewhat exaggerated in Figure l where they are indicated as covered by the upholstery of the back. In Figure 2 they are shown engaging the levers to support the rear edge of the back. These blocks are conveniently secured in the angle formed between the two flanges of the end members 35 of the back frame, so that it assumes a horizontal position with its previous lower edge closely abutting the rear edge The lower edge of the back is then member I6 to accommodate the ends 45 and 4B of the levers 34 when the back is in the bed position.

The operation of the back is such that it can be changed from the sofa to the bed position without having the rear upper edge 56 project any substantial distance further back than it is shown in Figure 1 so that the article of furniture does not need to be moved away from the wall prior to conversion. Since only one side of the back is ever used, the whole thickness can be given up to springs, padding, and upholstery for that side and it can be made just as comfortable as the seat portion and of the same resiliency. Because of the use of substantial track members which at all times support the seat and in the bed position also support the back, the structure is one of extreme rigidity. The operating mechanism is simple comprising only the two moving levers and their connected springs and since the levers are joined by the transversely extending rod 36 they are constrained to move in unison contributing largely to the smooth action of the back.

If at times it is desired to have `a clearer access to the whole area of the storage compartment, or if for purpose of cleaning, the underside of the back is desired to be available, it can be rotated about its pivots 35 after the seat has been drawn forward without swinging the levers down, thus exposing the rear face in a forward direction and uncovering a larger area of the storage compartment.

The feature of not requiring movement of the base in order to fold down the back, makes the sofa-bed particularly desirable for trailers and other vehicles since the base can be permanently fastened in position to resist sliding when the vehicle is in motion and yet the back can be close up against the wall to conserve the usually small amount of space available an-d no interference exists when the back is folded down.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. In a sofa-bed of the type described, in combination, a stationary base of box-like form, a seat unit independently slidab-le on said base to give access to the box for storage purposes, a back unit comprising a frame, springs and upholstery on the forward face only of said frame, a pair of levers each having one end pivoted intermediate the ends of the corresponding end frame members of said back unit, said levers being permanently attached to a rod, said rod extending longitudinally of said base, pivots for said rod secured tothe end members of said base, reinforcing brackets also secured to the base end members and drilled to receive said rod, Vthe levers being extended below said rod and having offset portions for cooperation with said brackets to limit rearward movement of the upper ends of said levers.

2. In a sofa-bed of the type described, in combination, a stationary base of box-like form, a seat unit independently slidable on said base to give access to the box for storage purposes, a back unit comprising a frame, springs and upholstery on the forward face only of said frame, a pair of levers each having one end pivoted intermediate the ends of the corresponding end frame members of said back unit, said levers being permanently attached to a rod, said rod extending longitudinally of said base, pivots for said rod secured to the end members of said base, reinforcing brackets also secured to the base end members and Adrilled to receive said rod, the levers being extended below said rod and having offset portions for cooperation with said brackets to limit rearward movement of the upper ends of said levers and assist springs extending forwardly from said offset portions and having their opposite ends secured to the base.

ROBERT W. SCHWAB, JR.` W'ILLIAM PARKS ROCKER. 

